Sweet 16
by Cinnamon123
Summary: There's no denying it, the Cutie Mark Crusaders are getting older, as are the Mane Six. With this comes new experiences and regrets, triumphs and failures. All have been humanized


**Hi, this is my first fanfiction. I hope you like it ! All of the characters have been humanized.**

* * *

Sweetie Belle woke up to the sound of singing.

"Happy Birthday to you.." sang her older sister, holding a tray on a sat upright in bed, and clapped as Rarity finished the song.

Breakfast in bed had been a tradition since she was little, and it was the same every year. Strawberries, iced tea and a croissant, all specially made by her big sister. They had been her favourites when she was five, but now that she was sixteen she would have honestly preferred a latte and pancakes.

Still, it was tradition. On July 20th, her parents were always doing _something_, and tended to send a cheque in the post a week later. So, Rarity tried her hardest to make Sweetie Belle happy on her birthday.

"Do you want your presents now, or later, birthday girl ?" asked Rarity, setting the tray on the bed. Sweetie Belle laughed. "Do you even need to ask ?" she replied, sipping iced tea from her lucky cup.

Rarity handed over eight neatly wrapped presents, and a pale green envelope. Sweetie Belle wanted to rip them open, but knowing how much her sister hated that, opened them neatly.

Pastel nail varnishes in a lacy make-up bag, a floral perfume, marshmallows, some Audrey Hepburn DVD's including Sweetie's favourite _Breakfast at Tiffany's_, a rose quartz pendant, some sewing books, and a pretty black nightdress Rarity had made herself. There was one parcel left, shaped exactly how Sweetie Belle wanted it.

Underneath the pale pink wrapping paper, was a case lined with velvet. Inside the case, was a beautiful, glossy, violin. Sweetie Belle hugged her sister tight - it was what she had been practicing at school but it had cost too much to buy one.

There was just the envelope left. There was a beautiful rose decopage card and inside... two tickets to go see Les Miserables in Manehatten. Sweetie Belle could hardly believe it - this was her best birthday by far. She began to cry with happiness. Rarity smiled, obviously proud of her gift picking abilities.

"Now finish your breakfast - Scootaloo and Apple Bloom are coming over and we need to tidy up," she insisted. Sweetie Belle nodded and ate happily. Sweet Sixteen and she had arrived.

* * *

After vacuuming, dusting and polishing until Rarity deemed the boutique fit, Sweetie Belle got dressed. She was proud of her round D-cups, bigger than her sister's. She was happy with her pale skin and her gooseberry green eyes. She was in love with her lilac and pale pink hair, which sat wavy past her shoulders.

So what was it that felt wrong with her reflection ?

She studied herself for a few minutes, turning round to examine each and every part of her. Apart from a flower shaped birthmark on her right thigh, she didn't seem to have many faults.

Perhaps it was the fact, at age sixteen, she had never been out with a boy. Nevermind that, she hadn't even _kissed_ one, while girls in her year weren't even virgin anymore. What was wrong with her ?

"Sweetie ! Come down, your friends will be here any minute !"

Sweetie Belle sighed and pulled on a thin floral jumper and her faded denim shorts. The doorbell rang downstairs, so she ran to get it as Rarity never would.

Scootaloo stood at the doorway with a cat suitcase and a messily wrapped present which was double coated in sellotape. She smiled anxiously.

"Happy birthday !" Scootaloo laughed, handing her the Sellotape Monster from the Sticky Lagoon. Rarity came to the door, and was clearly horrified by the gift.

"Maybe I should teach you some gift wrapping tips, Scootaloo," she said, taking the present from Sweetie Belle. She blushed and murmured something about not being very good at it. Scootaloo was invited inside and the present was revealed to be a bath set that smelled like vanilla ice cream.

The two sat there, talking about school and who said what about who while Rarity made chicken and sweetcorn soup for lunch. Scootaloo had decided to dress more gothic as she became older, and Sweetie Belle couldn't help but notice a rose chain tattoo at the top of her friend's leg, just hidden by her tartan skirt.

Scootaloo was only fifteen, the youngest of the group. It wasn't only stupid but also illegal to get one at this age. Of course Sweetie Belle couldn't mention it with Rarity listening in, but she made a gesture towards it. Scootaloo winked and put a finger to her lips.

Apple Bloom arrived ten minutes later, in a revealing green gingham sundress and stockings she had never worn before. Her present was a box of chocolates and a charm bracelet.

The three talked about when they were little, starting the Crusaders as nine year olds and growing up as friends. As they talked, Sweetie Belle realised why Apple Bloom had been late. There was no way that Applejack had let her little sister go out in a dress that short, and socks that high.

She had most clearly changed clothes on her way there. Sweetie Belle bit her lip, and thought that her friends were getting older. They weren't kids anymore, desperately wanting to know what they would be in life. Nor silly tweens, having crushes on bands and figuring out how to use eyeliner.

Maybe she was scared because she knew that she was growing up too.

* * *

After lunch, the trio headed up to Sweetie's girly room. The walls were beige and her bed cover was white, ruffled and patterned with tiny roses. Her wardrobe was cream with china rose handles, and full of dolly clothes. A pink sewing machine sat in the corner, then a white keyboard. There was a shelf where pretty Victorian dolls sat. A pale brown record player was currently playing Florence and the Machine.

The three girls sat in a circle on the bed with a bowl of toffee popcorn, and finally got to talk about what they wanted to.

Sweetie pulled up Scootaloo's skirt, and found not one but two rose halos circling the tops of her thighs. Scootaloo smiled proudly and traced the design with her finger.

"When did'you get that ?!" Apple Bloom exclaimed, looking at the deep red flowers. She tried to cover her accent, as she thought it was childish and made her sound stupid.

"Well.." Scootaloo grinned, wanting to pull out the tension, "I kinda met a guy..."

"When..?!" the other two gasped.

"The Mayday Parade concert... His old man runs a tattoo parlour, he works there..."

"And!?"

"He liked me, and I liked him... so, he gave he a tattoo... and now we're kinda going out."

The two other girls bombarded their friend with questions, how old he was (25), how old ?! (sorry) dates (a trip to a mueseum and a horror movie), and pictures (a tall pale guy with a heavy brown fringe and completely tattooed arms)

"Scootaloo.. you haven't _done_ anything with him have you ?" asked Apple Bloom saucily. Scootaloo laughed and poked out her tongue through a hole in her fingers.

The two girls burst out laughing, but Sweetie Belle, who for the most matured body had the most innocent mind, didn't get the joke. Scootaloo told her she would understand when she was older, even though Sweetie Belle was seven months older than her.

Apple Bloom whispered to her it meant _French Kissing_, and Sweetie Belle blushed pink. She was easily embarrassed about things like this.

"Speaking of boys..." smiled Apple Bloom, "I met the cutest guy in Manehatten visiting Babs. He was so sweet, we went to the cinema and kissed." She lifted up her cell phone triumphantly, with a number beneath the name _Boyfriend 3_

"Speaking of which Apple Bloom, I highly doubt your big sister let you out like that. Come on, be honest," Sweetie Belle accused. She blushed a little, twisting the hem of the dress between two fingers.

"Well.. In Manehatten, they had such lovely clothes but I knew my big sis wouldn't approve. So.. Babs lent me some money and I bought some. I keep them hidden in our old clubroom, in the trapdoor we used to keep candy." Apple Bloom hung her head, her face pink with shame. "An' all the boys seem to notice me now.. He said I looked so purty in them." Apple Bloom's accent came out as she gushed about her secret.

"What about you Sweetie, any summer romances ?" asked Scootaloo, trying to change the subject so Apple Bloom wouldn't get too upset. She shook her head and sighed.

"It's not that I don't_ like_ anybody, I'm just too shy to talk to them," she confessed.

"How about we play some Truth or Dare ?" asked Scootaloo. They sat on the floor, their legs forming a triangle.

"So Scootaloo, truth, or dare Apple Bloom smirked. Scootaloo accepted to do a dare, and was dared to wear Sweetie Belle's girliest dress - a lilac lacy dress with a cloud pattern. She clearly wanted a more dangerous dare but scowled and reluctantly put it on.

Surprisingly, it really suited her. Scootaloo thought otherwise.

"Jeez Sweetie, how big are your tits ?" Scootaloo had a sad A-cup which she was teased for at school. On the other hand, she was slim and pretty in an elfin way, with a cute heart shaped face and big violet eyes.

Sweetie Belle blushed and crossed her arms. She turned to Apple Bloom, "Truth or dare Bloomie ?"

"Truth," she smiled, knowing how extreme her friend's dares could get. Scootaloo thought for a moment then smirked. Apple Bloom swallowed nervously, that was never a good sign as far as she was concerned.

"Which one of us two, would you fuck ?" Scootaloo grinned. Apple Bloom blushed scarlet, her hazel eyes as big as saucers. Her family most certainly did not approve of anything like this, and it had rubbed off a little on her.

"Neither," she scowled, "an' that's a dirty question Scootaloo. I think _you_ might be a queer, and want to know if I would go out with you. But a' most certainly would not, not ever."

Scootaloo went pinker than salmon. Sweetie Belle was stunned at the remark. She could have just said no, or asked for another question. Why did she need to go out of her way to prove it ? She could see tears welling up in her friend's eyes.

"We should watch a DVD," Sweetie Belle said quietly, and they did, without saying a word the whole film.

* * *

After the film, both girls seemed to have forgotten about the remark, so Sweetie Belle didn't bring it up to keep it that way. They put on facials, gave each other nail art, had a take away pizza, played Chubby Bunny with the marshmallows and sang karaoke.

It was 10pm, and the girls decided to put on some old Disney films. After much arguing they settled on Snow White. Rarity watched them fondly from her sewing machine, and looked at how much they had grown.

Apple Bloom, in an amber gingham nightshirt and long black socks, had grown her red hair to her waist. Years of farmwork had given her sunkissed skin and strong muscles, including some perky abs. It was a shame such a pretty little girl would grow up to be a tired, overworked farmer like her older sister, like everybody else in the Apple family. She was bright too, but that would go to waste. As Applejack had once said, books don't get the farmwork done. Rarity secretly wanted to get Apple Bloom an apprenticeship, scholarship, anything to change her fate.

Ever since Rainbow Dash had left for the army, something had changed in Scootaloo. The little girl with dreams had ran away and been replaced by a cynical woman with olive skin and short, choppy mulberry hair. She was in a Foo Fighters t-shirt that was three sizes too big, and stripy black and white socks. Her eyeliner was smudged, as she hadn't bothered to take it off for bed. Now she concentrated on swimming and running, which had given her a slim figure. Scootaloo didn't give two shits about schoolwork, though her teachers were distraught about how bright she could be if she made any effort, which she never did. The only subjects she shone at were P.E, Art and French. The only parent figure in her life had left, and ever since she had gone downhill.

And then there was her darling sister Sweetie Belle, a very pale girl with wispy dyed hair a few inches below her shoulders. Puberty had given her wonderful curves Rarity was jealous of herself, and they were showed off in this black lacy nightgown. She could have passed for twenty, if it weren't for the pink faded bunny slippers on her feet. Rarity had hoped that the coming of age might have matured her slightly, but she was still the girly girl she had always been. In an ironic twist, her older sister wished Sweetie Belle would get a boyfriend and maybe grow up a little. But she never really had. Was it the fact she never saw her parents, and didn't get a proper childhood ? Maybe Sweetie Belle was trying to kid herself on that she was still nine, she still lived with her parents and that they loved her truly.

Rarity sighed and continued sewing. The last time they had watched Snow White they were so little, and now they had grown so much. Rarity too was getting old, just this morning she had been brushing her hair and to her horror found a silver hair lying in the plum. She was twenty nine, no longer the young lady she was before. Still single, looking for a prince. Her looks were starting to go to.

They were still young, still hopeful with so many paths to choose and so many places to go. She stopped for a minute, and watched them, engrossed in fairytales and woodland creatures.

"Girls?" Rarity's voice cracked a little as she tried not to cry. They all looked at her vaguely. Rarity swallowed the lump in her throat.

"Um.. I have some spare stock, it's all getting reduced.. Would you- would you like to pick something ? No charge, obviously." The girls beamed at her and ran to the stockroom, while Snow White sang to the birds and skipped around with baby deer.

_Run, while you still have a chance,_ thought Rarity. She put her hands firmly on the table to try and stop the room from spinning so quickly.

* * *

"Your sister is so nice!" chirped Apple Bloom, stroking velvet and silk skirts lovingly. "Applejack doesn't even let me eat any of our apples, since it wastes stock."

Sweetie Belle blushed, proud of her sister. She was pining for a short black ruffled skirt, with a back like a corset but she knew that Rarity would never approve of it. Instead, she settled for a dolly blouse with black ribbon beneath the collar.

"Hey guys, check this out !" Scootaloo piped up. She had found a box of clothes that were inappropriate to say the least. Tiny skirts, tight shirts, stockings and beautiful lingerie. The girls stroked them, tried them on and admired them but didn't dare ask Rarity for them.

Suddenly, Scootaloo shoved a pair of fishnet stockings with rose detail into her pockets when she thought Sweetie Belle wasn't looking.

"Hey!" cried Sweetie Belle, "that's stealing! Put that back or I'll tell my sister." Scootaloo rolled her eyes and put them back. But the more that Sweetie Belle thought about it, the better an idea it sounded. Rarity controlled every item of clothing she had, and made her pay for half of it when she didn't even particularly like it. She grabbed the skirt and put it in a bag.

"Now that's more like it," grinned Scootaloo, and soon the bag was full and hidden in Apple Bloom's suitcase to be put in the clubroom. Everybody felt guilty, but the adrenaline was incredible and the idea of getting these beautiful clothes for free was a chance they couldn't miss.

All three emerged with parental friendly clothes, and Rarity beamed at their modesty. Little did she know what the clothes hidden in the sister of the Element of Honesty's case looked like. They continued with Snow White, and watched three more Disney films before falling into an exhausted sleep.

* * *

Sweetie Belle dreamt that she was walking around the boutique naked. All the customers stared and pointed, but for some reason instead of being her usual shy self she didn't care. She turned and looked into one of the many mirrors in the shop.

Then, the mirror split in the middle. Sweetie Belle watched in horror as her teeth fell out, and her mouth filled with blood. It tasted too sweet, and she felt as if she was drowning in honey. She put her hands to her hair, which fell off in big chunks. She looked in horror at her split reflection, bald patches, blood dripping onto her breasts, her face morphing-

-and then she was sitting in an empty field. It was silent, not sunny or cloudy, warm or cold. She rose, and saw that she was in the revealing outfit she had chosen in the stockroom. The skirt blew in the breeze that wasn't there. Sweetie Belle started to run for no reason, she just knew she had to get away right now or it would get her.

The grass grew longer and longer, hitting her knees, thighs, waist, pulling her down. It coiled around her legs to try to trip her up. She kept trying, going as hard as she could but it was useless. Like quicksand, she was being dragged helplessly down.

* * *

Sweetie Belle woke up in her bloodstained bed.

She had her period in the night, so heavy it had soaked the entire bed. Scootaloo and Apple Bloom slept blissfully unaware in sleeping bags on the floor. Oh god, the blood was everywhere, like rust on her legs. Blood was stained on the carpet, on the mattress. Her single bed was a bloodbath.

Sweetie Belle crept to the bathroom, sat down on the toilet and just let it drip out of her. She wanted to cry, of shame, fear, embarrassment, but something wouldn't let her. She just sat there, utterly miserable.

What the hell was she supposed to do ?

**Thank you for reading ^_^ R&R ! I accept constructive criticism because I want to be able to write better. The story is loosely based off of Lana Del Rey's _This Is What Makes Us Girls._**

**Thanks !**


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